Sales Tax & VAT Calculator
Add or remove sales tax and VAT from any amount. Find the price before tax, the tax amount, and the final price with tax for any tax rate.
+ Second tax layer (state + local, QST, etc.) (optional)
Compound = rate 2 applies to the amount after rate 1 (e.g. Quebec QST on top of GST). Separate = rate 2 applies to the same base as rate 1 (e.g. US state + local). The total tax is the sum.
About this tool
Sales Tax & VAT Calculator adds or removes sales tax and VAT from any amount. Type a price and a tax rate, then read off the tax amount and the final price. Two modes cover the two questions people actually ask: "how much does this cost with tax?" (net → gross) and "what was the price before tax was added?" (gross → net).
Example 1 — add 20% VAT to a €100.00 net price → tax €20.00, gross €120.00. Example 2 — a price tag reads £60.00 including 20% VAT → net £50.00, tax £10.00. The effective-rate box shows the combined rate so you can sanity-check multi-layer setups (e.g. US state + local sales tax, or Canadian GST + QST).
The optional second tax layer handles compound taxes (Quebec charges QST on top of the GST-inclusive amount) and separate taxes (a US city adds its local rate to the same base as the state rate). Pick a country preset for common VAT/GST rates, or type any custom rate.
FAQ
How is the price before tax calculated? ›
To remove tax: net = gross ÷ (1 + rate/100). For a £60 price with 20% VAT: 60 ÷ 1.2 = £50 net, and £10 is the tax. To add tax: gross = net × (1 + rate/100). For €100 at 19%: 100 × 1.19 = €119 gross.
What is a VAT-inclusive vs VAT-exclusive price? ›
VAT-exclusive (net) is the price before tax — what a business quotes to another VAT-registered business. VAT-inclusive (gross) is what a consumer pays, with tax already in the sticker price. B2B prices in the EU are typically net; consumer prices are typically gross.
How does the second tax layer work? ›
"Compound" applies rate 2 to the amount after rate 1 has been added — Quebec does this (QST is charged on the GST-inclusive amount). "Separate" applies rate 2 to the same base amount as rate 1 — US state + local sales tax work this way. The total tax is the sum of both layers.
Does this handle US sales tax? ›
Yes. US sales tax is almost always quoted as already-included in the shelf price at the register, so use "Remove tax" only when you know the combined state + local rate. The presets list a few combined rates (California average, NYC, Tennessee); for other states enter your state + local rate as a second separate tax layer.
Why does the effective rate differ from the entered rate? ›
When two taxes compound, the effective rate is higher than the simple sum because rate 2 is charged on a larger base. For example 5% GST + 9.975% QST compounded gives an effective rate of about 15.5%, not 14.975% — that is correct and matches how Quebec actually calculates it.